Former leading New Zealand publisher and bookseller, and widely experienced judge of both the Commonwealth Writers Prize and the Montana New Zealand Book Awards, talks about what he is currently reading, what impresses him and what doesn't, along with chat about the international English language book scene, and links to sites of interest to booklovers.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Classic works of literature still have a place in today's classrooms

We shouldn't be ditching classic texts for contemporary stories, students need a blend of past and present to develop crucial skills, says English teacher Sally LawSally Law

Blending contemporary and classic styles: English teacher Sally Law wants her students to learn a broad range of texts. Photograph: Eddy Risch/EPA

When introducing literature to a new class I ask two questions: "Why do we study it and what can we learn from it?" Now, if you're a teacher you'll know that it's not always a smooth ride to the final destination, which is all part of the fun, but the answer we usually get to, albeit with teacher sat-nav switched on, is that through literature, we can visit cultures impossible for us to experience ourselves. From our reading, we can begin to understand what it must have been like to live in a particular time, under certain conditions, in different parts of the world. But the best bit is that we can do all this while honing those oh-so-necessary and desired critical-thinking skills.And that's the point: that the study of literature in the contemporary classroom is, perhaps, even more relevant today than it has ever been.So, back in September when the Secret Teacher posted that the Alan Bennett monologue A Cream Cracker under the Settee was to be replaced in the curriculum by an episode of Waterloo Road, it's not unimaginable that English teachers stood poised, quills aloft, ready to defend the body of work that has shaped the modern world, to the death. Well, to the staffroom and the discussion forums at least. One of the reasons cited for this usurping of a great British classic, in favour of a younger model, was that students just couldn't engage with the subject matter. Are they even called cream crackers these days? At a time when the common aim of those in education, certainly the majority of us, is to prepare pupils for a world that evolves at the speed of fibre-optics, the role of literature and its importance in equipping our pupils for the future has never been more apt.But just what are the benefits to teaching literature to the young 'uns these days?Full story at The Guardian